Your Best Friend or Worst Enemy: Snowpack Temperature Gradient Explained When talking about avalanches and backcountry risk, the term “weak layer” seems to come up quite a lot. In this article, I’ll delve into what a temperature gradient is, how it forms, and why it can be your best friend or worst enemy, depending on the day. Scroll all the way down for a TL;DR! Related: VIDEO: Basic Snow Forecasting Tools […] Avalanche Clay Malott | November 13, 2020 3 Comments
The Science of Early Season Snowfall: A Curse in Disguise? Usually, when skiers read of the first snowfall of the season, we rejoice. At the start of winter, the first snowfall only means more snow to come. But if we take a more scientific look at it, we can see that the first snowfall is not so great, after all, because it causes a dangerous avalanche condition known as facets. […] Avalanche Clay Malott | August 28, 2020 3 Comments
What Is Faceted Snow & Why Does It Cause Avalanches? Early-season snowfall and a thin snowpack are some of our biggest enemies in the avalanche game. That’s because these conditions are prime for faceting, which creates persistent weak layers. So far this season, with October promises of an epic season still unfulfilled by January in many places, a faceted weak layer has been the culprit of a majority of the fatalities in North America and Europe. […] Avalanche SnowBrains | January 29, 2014 1 Comment
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